Lewis Hamilton Takes his 4th World Championship Title

With a 66 point lead over Vettel, Lewis Hamilton needed 5th place to win the drivers championship in Mexico. But Vettel hit him on the first lap, and he had to pit with a puncture. Read on to find out what happened next.

Lewis Hamilton Takes his 4th World Championship Title.

Mercedes headed to Mexico without high expectations, the thin air was not going to suit the pace of their car, so it was expected that Ferrari and Red Bull would be faster. But the pressure was not too strong. as Lewis Hamilton only needed to finish 5th to win the drivers championship.

During all 3 practices Lewis came second, but as usual, Ferrari didn't show their true pace until qualifying. Red Bull also had strong pace, and in Q2 Verstappen put in a time over half a second faster than anyone. Lewis did a new personal best, but it was not enough to elevate him any higher.

In Q3, Verstappen could not repeat his previous time, and then Vettel put in an even faster one, taking a very dominant pole position, with Verstappen 2nd, Lewis 3rd, and Bottas 4th. Lewis said afterwards he had got everything he possibly could out of the car, but didn't have the pace of the other two teams. He also said, that although he only needed 5th position, he was here to win the title in the proper way. by winning the race.

On Race Day

As soon as they started, it was clear to see there was going to be problems, and there was at turn 3 Max Verstappen had a good start, and Vettel, in his attempt to defend, hit him. It did not damage Max's car, but Vettel had a damaged wing.

Lewis, hoping to take advantage of their situation, attempted to drive past, allowing Vettel plenty of space, but in a very bizarre move, Vettel appeared to turn his wheel and drive into him. Both men now had to pit, it was worse for Lewis, as he had to do almost a complete lap until he reached the pits.

Vettel came out first, at the back of the grid, and then Lewis came out behind him, the very last car. He was in 20th position, and he remained there for a few laps, whilst Vettel started to pick his way up the grid. It was obvious that there was more than a puncture wrong with Lewis's car, as it totally seemed to lack pace.

But Lewis kept pushing, he refused to give up his title hopes, and slowly he began to pick his way up the grid. After a pit stop for fresh tyres, his pace got stronger, and after a very exciting duel with Alonso, he finally made it into 9th place. Everyone watched with bated breath to see if Vettel could make it into 2nd place to keep his own title hopes alive, would any of the front cars suffer a reliability problem and not finish?

But Vettel could get no higher than 4th, so as Lewis came past the chequered flag, he knew he was a 4 time world champion, and the whole stadium erupted with cheers and excitement of such an achievement.

Verstappen won the race.

Verstappen drove very well and achieved a dominant win, Bottas was 2nd , and Raikennon was 3rd. Bottas explained after that his car had not had the pace to keep up with Max, but he was very happy to be back on the podium.

Lewis and Bottas exchanged a hug of congratulation to each other, and whilst Lewis was being interviewed, Vettel came over to also hug and congratulate him. He was later to confess that Lewis deserved the championship, he had driven so well this year, so whether the first lap incident had been a mistake or not, it hardly mattered as it had not affected the outcome of the race, and the title.

It was clear to see Lewis was in a daze, it had not yet sunk in, he brought his mother up to share the special moment with him, her face showed her pride in her very special son, as he draped the Union Jack around them both Later it was reported, they went out to celebrate.

The After math

Since then celebrities of stage and sporting world have come out in force to congratulate Lewis His fellow drivers have all tweeted praise, and most notable is that Sir Jackie Stewart has willingly acknowledged his pleasure at seeing Lewis break his record of 3 world championships in Britain, which has stood for a long time. Nigel Mansell has also hailed him, and both of these men have said how much Lewis deserves to be knighted by Her Majesty for his contribution to Formula One, his courage, and the fact that he is such a role model to young people of the future.

He is always polite, gives others respect, and even at his most disappointing time last season when his engine blew up in Malaysia, his strongest words were "OH NO," he always makes sure than any thing he says over the car radio is not profane. What better example is there for impressionable teenagers, than a young boy living in a council house in Stevenage, becoming such a superstar, and never forgetting how much his father supported him, and remaining humble as he is.

There will always be some people who hate people such as Lewis, who achieve so much in their lives. They are in the minority thank goodness, as it is heavily documented that Lewis has more fans than any driver has ever had. One only has to look at him crowd surfing at the British Grand prix, to see how much love most of Britain has for him. I think it's a shame that people who have sad lives put all their energy into trolling his sites, and writing such lies about him, what a way to carry on!

But Lewis will rise above their negativity, I believe this will be Lewis's Year, with his 4th world championship firmly accomplished with still 2 races to go, how about voting for him as Sports Personality of the year? Every time he gets in his car he risks his life, so he deserves more accolades. I am also hoping he will get a knighthood, to know his achievements have been acknowledged by the most important family in Britain would not only mean so much to him, but also to his army of devoted fans everywhere.LEWIS YOU ARE THE BEST IN THE WORLD, AND THE PRIDE OF BRITAIN! XXIf you wish to nominate Lewis for a knighthood, click here.My thanks to Wikipedia for the images, and Youtube for the video